Silver Halo Guild – Manila Headquarters, 8:24 PM
A cold silence lingered in the strategy room. Rain pattered against reinforced windows as the image of Seoul's decimated skyline flickered on the holo-screen. Maria del Rosario stood with her arms folded tightly, her fingers trembling from barely-contained frustration. Tricia Arce sat across from her, a healing salve visible on her neck—one of many wounds from the recent nightmare.
The footage was clear: Kim Hwan and his squad, cloaked in black, stormed the Silver Halo Guild during the chaos of the Calamity Dragon's appearance. The fight was brutal. Members fell one by one. Kim's overwhelming force had nearly wiped them out. And in the midst of that chaos… he stole the Dimensional Core.
Tricia's voice was cold. "We should've seen it coming. He knew exactly where the core was. They didn't come to kill us—they came to take it."
Maria's jaw clenched. "And they did."
The room buzzed with tension. Maria turned away from the screen and faced the window, staring into the stormy skyline.
"We're not going after them. Not yet," she finally said.
Tricia frowned. "Why not?"
Maria's voice was steady, but her eyes burned. "Because this isn't just about revenge anymore. This is about something larger than us." She turned back to Tricia. "We report everything to the High Hunter Society. Every name. Every move. Let them see the truth for themselves."
Tricia nodded solemnly. "The world needs to know who really caused the disaster in Seoul."
Maria stared into the night.
> "What are you planning, Ried?" she whispered to herself. "Are you trying to end the world? And you… Kim Hwan… we fought side by side once. We were allies. What have you done?"
---
Dark Triad – Underground Base, Seoul, Korea – Midnight
The chamber thrummed with a low, unnatural hum. Strange artifacts and flickering glyphs pulsed with energy as the Dimensional Core hovered above a dark altar—beating like a heart torn from another universe.
Kim Hwan stood before it, hands on his hips, breathing slow but tense. The others were present—Mae Lou, Dao & Yao, Kellan Graves, Wretch—but silent. Their gazes flicked between the core and the brewing argument between their leader and their strongest warrior.
Kim's voice broke the silence.
> "I don't like this plan you made, Ried."
Ried Stone, leaning calmly against the obsidian wall, opened one eye. "Go on."
Kim stepped forward, his tone sharper now. "You almost wiped out humanity. If that boy hadn't stopped the Calamity Dragon, we'd all be ash. You threw the whole world into chaos for what? To test a theory?"
He pointed at the core hovering above them. "And now you want to open another rift with that thing? We don't even know what else could come crawling through that hole."
Ried didn't flinch. He slowly stepped forward, his eyes glowing faintly with unnatural power.
> "You think too small, Kim."
Kim scowled. "I want revenge. On the High Hunter Society. For what they did to us. That's what we agreed on."
Ried stopped inches from him. "And you'll get it. But first, we have to break the world's foundation. Shatter the illusion of peace they built. Only then can we rebuild something new."
Kim's fists clenched, but he said nothing.
Ried leaned closer, his voice like a whisper of a blade sliding into flesh.
> "You'll understand soon, Kim. Just… stick to the plan."
The silence that followed was deafening. Kim stared into Ried's eyes, his own expression unreadable.
Then he turned away, walking into the shadows.
The rest of the Dark Triad watched in silence.
Mae Lou chuckled to herself. "Tension makes everything so delicious."
Kellan Graves smirked, illusions flickering around him. "Let him stew. The storm is coming."
And in the dark, the Dimensional Core pulsed again—stronger this time. Hungrier.
---
To Be Continued...